Box of Chocolates
by CassiopeiaRoseBlack
Summary: The equivalent of a box of chocolates, you could say. One-shots and drabbles I needed to get out of my system and put here. (Rating may change, no update schedule.)


Once Upon A Time…

In a kingdom far, far away, lost to time, there lived a prince. A Prince most handsome, his grace known throughout the land. Hair as dark as night, skin as pale as the moon outside, lips more red then the wild garden rose, and eyes that burned a deep, midnight blue that lay your mortal soul bare before him.

For ages, his royal family had lived in a palace most spectacular, made of polished stone, stretching and resting upon the edge of a cliff, overlooking the sea, a great lake, and a dense forest. The castle had so many wings, layers, towers, staircases, why, it took over a thousand maids and servants to keep the place tidy and in shape. Indeed, the family, especially the Prince, seemed to have it all. Good looks, riches, charisma, and devoted followers.

But he was still lacking.

His followers didn't know, nor did they dig, to see what he did behind the scenes. They didn't see the mysterious disappearances that happened so close and randomly in the forest surrounding the castle, people who wandered in, never coming back out. They didn't hear the howls and the roars of mysterious creatures whom no one ever saw, but still feared.

They didn't see the suppression of the poor, the abuse of the weaker, and the unhappiness and disrespect of the kingdom to its Prince, soon to be King.

And if they saw, the aristocrats, the few who are allowed to be graced by his highness's presence, didn't bat an eye. For they, if on the throne, wouldn't do anything different.

And they especially didn't see the villages and towns starving as they came to collect taxes most could barely afford, taking women, men and children of all ages as payment if you couldn't cough the set amount up every month.

How those taxes and money went to decorate the castle with useless décor, throw lavish parties that only the wealthiest were invited to, and how it was wasted on wine and ale.

No one of importance saw, much less cared, about the wrongdoings and the evils committed in the kingdom. No one...except one.

And it was during one of these parties, that the kingdom was forever changed.

. . .

" _Oh how divine!_

 _Glamour, music, and magic combine_

 _See the maidens to anxious to shine_

 _Look for a sign that enhances_

 _Chances_

 _She'll be his special one!_

 _What a display!_

 _What a breathtaking, thrilling array_

 _Every prince, every dog has his day_

 _And I'll sing with passion, gusto, fit to bust!_

 _Oh, not a care in the world!"_

The prince sat on his throne in the ballroom, rubbing his temples as he watched his guests twirl and dance, exaggerating moves to get his attention. Why had he hired that short little half-goblin to sing again? He could already feel a migraine coming on.

If it were up to him, he'd never have any more balls, no more stupid dances and large dresses that could smother you in your sleep. No more anxious and desperate girls throwing themselves at him in order to seem pleasing, to seem worthy and snag the spot as future-queen.

He scoffed at the idea mentally. Romance, fake or real, of any kind, would never be on his to-do list.

He was snapped out of his thoughts rudely by the infuriating little half-blood hitting a high note that sounded more like a banshee screech to him than anything remotely related to music.

Letting out a tired sigh, he returned to watching his guests act and dance like fools, unaware of the danger that approached.

. . .

However, this night, an unexpected intruder arrived at the palace gates. She was haggard and hideous in appearance, her clothes and cowl drenched from the raging storm outside. Her skin was oily and full of blackheads, her nose hooked and protruding at an awkward angle. She had warts all over her face, and greasy, limp gray hair hung around her head, her dull brown eyes staring up into his. Her back was hunched and dis formed horridly, while her fingers were wrinkly and bony. She reeked of filth, of someone who hadn't bathed in years, and her clothes were smudged and dirty, most likely once a lovely color, before the dirt and mud had covered up whatever it used to be.

As a gift, for exchange for shelter, she dug out of her robe a single, blood red rose.

However, repulsed by her haggard and ugly appearance, the prince warned her away. He threw the rose to the ground and laughed, as did his followers, at the ugly woman's misfortune

But she warned him not to be deceived by appearances, for what you see isn't always as it seems. She told him that beauty, true beauty, is found within the skin.

When he laughed in her face again, boasting of his own looks, his wealth and her lack of, dismissing her again, the woman's outward, ghastly appearance melted away to reveal a beautiful enchantress.

The prince's followers and guests were astounded and scared by the sudden and unexplainable magic, and quickly started to flee the witchcraft they saw. The prince, not one to be made a fool of, became angry and insulted the witch. However, after a display of power, and the weird shocks he could feel across his body, he quickly fell to his knees. Prideful he was, he was smart enough to know when to bend for his survival.

He begged the beautiful woman for forgiveness, offering her fortune, money, influence, anything she wanted. But it was too late. She had looked into his soul, his heart and his mind, and saw that it was devoid of love and feeling.

As punishment, she transformed him into a hideous beast, similar to the one he saw her as before. She placed a powerful spell on the castle and all who lived there too, to ensure him of suffering like he had never known before.

But she left the rose, for it had actually been a truly enchanted rose. She told him, gave him a seed of hope, that if he could learn to love and gain another' love in return before all the petals on the rose fell and decayed, then the spell would be broken, and him and his peoples would be free.

If not, and the rose died, he would be doomed to remain in his beastly form for all of time.

As hours afterwards bled into days, and days in months, months into years, the Prince and his castle, his followers were all forgotten about; for the enchantress had erased all memories of them from the minds of the people they loved.

As years and years passed, he fell into a self-loathing depression and rage. He ripped portraits and tore the castle apart in sorrow and rage. He and his people lost hope and despaired. For who could ever learn to love such a hideous beast?

 **Yes, I know this has been done many, many times before in the past. However, as I was listening to Evermore in the live-action Beauty and the Beast, and then started listening to the full soundtrack, the thought occurred to me to write something involving Tom Riddle as the Beast (though it has been done before.)**

 **As with all the stories uploaded onto this 'story', I will not be doing a whole story-based on it unless I have requests for it, greater or equal to 20 if I can.**

 **While I love Tomoine, they are not my favorite Harry Potter ship. I have many of those, not all being shipped with Hermoine too.**

 **Anyway, if you liked it, please let me know! I mostly post these just to get them out of my system when they come to me, so there is no guaranteed update schedule.**

 **On that note,**

 **Keep reading my beauties.**


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